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Abstract:

Hair lifting frames are provided in a range between a top of a first
outer blade located on one side in the traveling direction and a top of a
second outer blade located on the other side in the traveling direction
in the use of a shaver main body (an electric shaver). Accordingly, the
hair lifting frames can efficiently lift body hair up, and at the same
time, an influence (damage) on a skin surface can be prevented.

Claims:

1. An electric shaver, comprising: a shaver main body; outer blades
having blade holes defined by frames; and inner blades provided inside
the outer blades to move relative to the outer blades and cut body hair
inserted into the blade holes, wherein a plurality of the outer blades
are formed into an arc-like shape projecting toward a skin surface and
exposed on a top end surface of the shaver main body, the frames of at
least one of the outer blades are provided with hair lifting frames that
come into contact with the body hair to lift the body hair from the skin
surface when moving on the skin surface, and the hair lifting frames are
provided in a range between a top portion of a first outer blade located
on one side in a traveling direction and a top portion of a second outer
blade located on another side in the traveling direction when using the
shaver main body.

Description:

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to an electric shaver.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] Various types of electric shavers to shave body hair have been
developed. Herein, an angle formed by the extending direction of body
hair and a skin surface is called a hair rising angle. Although body hair
at a large hair rising angle (for example, 45° to 60°) is
easy to shave, it is difficult to shave body hair at a small hair rising
angle (for example, 30° or less), that is, lying body hair. Thus,
electric shavers provided with hair lifting portions in frames of outer
blades having a hair lifting ability higher than conventional hair
lifting portions have been developed (for example, refer to Patent
Document 1).

CITATION LIST

Patent Literature

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 3083548

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] In the conventional electric shavers, plural (three) outer blades
provided with the hair lifting portions described above are provided, and
generally formed into an arc-like shape projecting toward the skin
surface.

[0005] Therefore, in the case of using those electric shavers, the regions
having high adhesion to the skin (contact pressure) and the regions
having small adhesion are both present. If hair lifting portions are
provided in the regions having high adhesion, the skin surface may be
damaged.

[0006] Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide an
electric shaver capable of lifting body hair efficiently by providing
hair lifting frames, and capable of preventing an influence on a skin
surface.

[0007] In order to solve the above-described problem, an electric shaver
according to the present invention includes: a shaver main body; outer
blades having blade holes defined by frames; and inner blades provided
inside the outer blades to move relative to the outer blades and cut body
hair inserted into the blade holes, wherein a plurality of the outer
blades are formed into an arc-like shape projecting toward a skin surface
and exposed on a top end surface of the shaver main body, the frames of
at least one of the outer blades are provided with hair lifting frames
that come into contact with the body hair to lift the body hair from the
skin surface when moving on the skin surface, and the hair lifting frames
are provided in a range between a top portion of a first outer blade
located on one side in a traveling direction and a top portion of a
second outer blade located on another side in the traveling direction
when using the shaver main body.

[0008] According to the present invention, the hair lifting frames are
provided in the range between the top portion of the first outer blade
located on one side in the traveling direction and the top portion of the
second outer blade located on the other side in the traveling direction
in the use of the shaver main body. As a result, the hair lifting frames
can efficiently lift the body hair up, and at the same time, an influence
(damage) on the skin surface can be prevented.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009]FIG. 1 is a front view showing an electric shaver according to a
first embodiment of the present invention.

[0010]FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an inner blade of a blade unit
shown in FIG. 1.

[0013]FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a part of the outer blade
of FIG. 1.

[0014]FIG. 6(a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A in
FIG. 5, and FIG. 6(b) is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a short-side
end portion.

[0015]FIG. 7(a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in
FIG. 5, and FIG. 7(b) is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a hair
lifting portion.

[0016]FIG. 8 is an enlarged perspective view around a frame in a
longitudinal direction of FIG. 7.

[0017] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C in FIG.
8.

[0018]FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing the outer blades (first to
third net blades) of FIG. 3 viewed from a lateral side.

[0019] FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing outer blades (first and second
net blades) viewed from a lateral side according to a second embodiment
of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be
described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the
respective embodiments described below include the identical components.
Thus, those components are indicated by the common reference numerals and
the overlapped explanations thereof will not be repeated.

First Embodiment

[0021] FIGS. 1 to 10 are views showing an electric shaver according to a
first embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, an electric shaver 1 according to the present
embodiment is mainly composed of a shaver main body 3, a blade unit 4
provided on the top of the shaver main body 3, and a driving unit (not
shown in the figures.) to drive the blade unit 4.

[0023] The shaver main body 3 according to the present embodiment is
divided into a grip portion 7 held by a user, and a head unit 5 connected
to the upper end of the grip portion 7. The head unit 5 is provided with
the blade unit 4 to remove body hair, and the grip portion 7 is provided
with a push-button switch 9 to control the driving unit to operate (turn
on and off) the blade unit 4.

[0024] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the blade unit 4 includes outer blades
11 exposed on the top end surface of the shaver main body 3, and inner
blades 13 provided inside the outer blades 11 (below the outer blades 11)
and configured to reciprocate in a longitudinal direction 23.

[0025] The outer blades 11 according to the present embodiment include a
first net blade 17, a second net blade 19 and a third net blade 21, which
are arranged parallel to each other in a short-side direction 25 that is
the traveling direction (the shaving direction) of the electric shaver 1.
In particular, the first to third net blades 17, 19 and 21 extend in the
longitudinal direction 23 perpendicular to the short-side direction 25.
The first net blade 17 and the second net blade 19 are located on both
sides (on one side and the opposite side) in the short-side direction 25,
and the third net blade 21 is located between the first net blade 17 and
the second net blade 19.

[0026] The first to third net blades 17, 19 and 21 composing the outer
blades 11 are each formed into an arc-like shape projecting toward the
skin of a user (toward the upper side in the present embodiment) as shown
in FIG. 4. According to the present embodiment, the first to third net
blades 17, 19 and 21 are formed into an inverted U-shape in cross-section
in the short-side direction 25 each having a top portion 27 and both side
surfaces 29 and 29. The inner blades 13 are formed to conform to the
inner shapes of the respective net blades 17, 19 and 21.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 5, the outer blades 11 are provided with a number
of blade holes 36 that introduce body hair thereinto. The inner blades 13
move relative to the outer blades 11 (reciprocate in the longitudinal
direction 23) so that the inner blades 13 cut the introduced body hair in
cooperation with the outer blades 11.

[0028] The blade holes 36 are defined by frames 32. In other words, the
frames 32 of the outer blades 11 include transverse frames 35 extending
in an inverted U-shaped manner in the short-side direction 25 and
vertical frames 30 extending in the longitudinal direction 23, and the
blade holes 36 are defined by the transverse frames 35 and the vertical
frames 30. The blade holes 36 have the dimension sufficient to introduce
the body hair thereinto. Note that, in the figure, a dashed-dotted line Y
is a center line (the top) passing through the middle of the top portion
27 in the short-side direction 25.

[0029] The vertical frames 30 according to the present embodiment include
hair lifting frames 33 provided with hair lifting portions 45 described
below, and common vertical frames 31 having a hair lifting ability lower
than the hair lifting frames 33.

[0030] As shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b), each common vertical frame 31 is
formed into an approximately flat plate in cross-section. Each short-side
end portion (hair lifting portion) 41 of the common vertical frame 31 is
formed into a semicircular shape in cross-section having a radius of
curvature of R1. The R1 is preferably 10 μm, for example. Note that a
surface 37 of the transverse frame 35 is located closer to the skin than
a surface 42 of the common vertical frame 31, and the vertical distance
between the surface 42 of the common vertical frame 31 and the surface 37
of the transverse frame 35 is set to L1.

[0031] Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 7(a), each hair lifting frame 33 is
formed into a substantially symmetric U-shape in cross-section. A central
outer surface 49 in the short-side direction is formed into a flat shape,
and bent portions 47 are inclined upward and extend toward the outer
surface of the outer blade 11 (in the upper direction in the figure) from
the central outer surface 49. The front ends of the bent portions 47
serve as the hair lifting portions 45 formed into a tapered shape.

[0032] The bent portions 47 are provided with inclined upper surfaces 51
on the upper side thereof, and provided with inclined lower surfaces 53
on the lower side thereof. That is, the respective hair lifting frames 33
are composed of the central outer surface 49, the inclined upper surfaces
51, the inclined lower surfaces 53 and a bottom surface 55. The vertical
distance between each short-side end portion 43 of the bent portion 47
and the surface 37 of the transverse frame 35 is set to L2. Thus, the
hair lifting frames 33 are arranged in an offset manner so as to satisfy
the magnitude relation of L2<L1. The difference between L1 and L2 is
preferably 10 μm, for example.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 7(b), the short-side end portion 43 of the bent
portion 47 is formed into a semicircular shape in cross-section having a
radius of curvature of R2. The magnitude relation between R1 and R2 is
set to be R2<R1. The R2 is preferably 3 μm, for example. Here, a
clearance angle α formed by the inclined upper surface 51 and a
reference line 57 in the short-side direction indicated by the chain
double-dotted line is set larger than the clearance angle formed by the
surface 41 of the common vertical frame 31 and the reference line 57
(that is 0°) as shown in FIG. 6(a).

[0034] Therefore, according to the outer blades 11 of the present
embodiment, the hair lifting frames 33 can lift the lying body hair
having a small angle to skin more efficiently than the common vertical
frames 31. Namely, the hair lifting frames 33 have a hair lifting ability
higher than the common vertical frames 31.

[0035] As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, each longitudinal end portion 61 of the
hair lifting frame 33 extends substantially linearly in cross-section
from a side wall 59 of the transverse frame 35 in the longitudinal
direction. Each longitudinal end portion 61 is connected to a
longitudinal center portion 63 via a gently-curved boundary 65. A radius
of curvature of the boundary 65 is preferably 10 μm, for example.

[0036] Therefore, the outer blades 11 according to the present embodiment
can lift the body hair at a small hair rising angle (for example,
30° or less) efficiently due to the hair lifting frames 33 having
the hair lifting ability higher than the common vertical frames 31.
However, as described above, the outer blades 11 are formed into an
arc-like shape projecting toward the skin surface. Thus, during the use
of the electric shaver 1, the regions having high adhesion to the skin
(contact pressure) and the regions having small adhesion are both
present. If the hair lifting portions 33 are evenly provided in the first
to third net blades 17, 19 and 21, the influence (damage) on skin is
increased.

[0037] Especially, when using the electric shaver 1 including the plural
outer blades (in the present embodiment, the first to third net blades
17, 19 and 21), the portion that comes first into contact with the skin
(that is, the R portion of either the first net blade 17 or the second
net blade 19 on the outer side in the short-side direction 25 that is the
traveling direction) has higher adhesion to the skin. If the hair lifting
frames 33 are provided in the regions having higher adhesion, the skin is
damaged.

[0038] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10, the hair lifting frames 33
according to the present embodiment are provided in a range X between a
top Y of the first net blade 17 located on one side in the traveling
direction and a top Y of the second net blade 19 located on the other
side in the traveling direction in the use of the electric shaver 1 (the
shaver main body 3).

[0039] In particular, according to the present embodiment, the vertical
frames 30 of the third net blade 21 are composed of the common vertical
frames 31 and the hair lifting frames 33, and the vertical frames 30 of
the first net blade 17 and the second net blade 19 are respectively
composed only of the common vertical frames 31.

[0040] Thus, in the electric shaver 1 according to the present embodiment,
an R portion 17a of the first net blade 17 on the outer side in the
short-side direction and an R portion 19a of the second net blade 19 on
the outer side in the short-side direction are not provided with the hair
lifting frames 33. Therefore, regardless of whether the outer blades 11
move forward or backward in the short-side direction 25 during the use of
the electric shaver 1, damage to the skin surface 37 can be prevented.

[0041] In addition, the third net blade 21 provided with the hair lifting
frames 33 is arranged between the first net blade 17 and the second net
blade 19. Therefore, when the third net blade 21 comes into contact with
the skin surface 37 in a series of operation to remove the body hair by
sliding the electric shaver 1, the hair lifting frames 33 provided in the
third net blade 21 can efficiently lift the lying body hair at a small
angle to the skin surface 37.

[0042] As described above, in the electric shaver 1 according to the
present embodiment, the hair lifting frames 33 to lift the body hair at a
small hair rising angle are provided in the range X between the top Y of
the first net blade 17 located on one side in the traveling direction and
the top Y of the second net blade 19 located on the other side in the
traveling direction in the use of the electric shaver 1 (the shaver main
body 3). Accordingly, the hair lifting frames 33 can efficiently lift the
body hair up and at the same time, an influence (damage) on the skin
surface 37 can be prevented.

[0043] Namely, the hair lifting frames 33, which include the hair lifting
portions 45 configured to have a higher hair lifting ability compared
with the short-side end portion (the hair lifting portions) 41 of the
common vertical frames 31, are not provided in the R portions 17a and 19a
in which adhesion to the skin surface 37 is high. Thus, an influence
(damage) on the skin surface 37 caused by the hair lifting frames 33 can
be suppressed.

[0044] Especially, according to the present embodiment, regardless of
whether the electric shaver 1 moves forward or backward in the short-side
direction 25, damage to skin can be prevented while the hair lifting
frames 33 can lift the body hair up efficiently. As a result, an effect
of improving usability for a user can be achieved.

[0045] In addition, according to the present embodiment, the frames 32
include the vertical frames 30 extending in the longitudinal direction 23
of the outer blades 11 and the transverse frames 35 extending in the
short-side direction 25, in which the hair lifting frames 33 provided
with the hair lifting portions 45 are provided in the vertical frames 30.
Therefore, since the body hair lifted by the hair lifting frames 33 are
easily inserted in the blade holes 36, an effect of easily shaving the
body hair can be achieved.

[0046] Moreover, according to the present embodiment, the hair lifting
portions 45 of the hair lifting frames 33 are formed into a tapered shape
inclined upward and extending toward the outer surface of the outer blade
11 (in the upper direction in the figure). Since the short-side end
portions 43 of the hair lifting portions 45 are formed into a tapered
shape in cross-section, the hair lifting portions 45 having a simple
configuration can be provided. In addition, the tapered shape of the hair
lifting portions 45 inclined upward and extending toward the outer
surface of the outer blades 11 (in the upper direction in the figure) can
prevent the body hair at a small hair rising angle from entering the gap
between the hair lifting portions 45 and the skin, and can lift the lying
body hair up more reliably.

[0047] Further, according to the present embodiment, the longitudinal end
portions 61 of the hair lifting frames 33 are formed into an
approximately linear shape in cross-section, the bent portions 47 are
provided in the longitudinal center portions 63, and the longitudinal end
portions 61 located on both sides are connected to the longitudinal
center portions 63 via the gently-curved boundaries 65. Due to the
gently-curved boundaries 65 connecting the longitudinal end portions 61
located on both sides and the longitudinal center portions 63 of the hair
lifting frames 33, an influence (damage) on the skin surface 37 caused by
the boundaries 65 can be prevented when sliding the outer blades 11 along
the skin surface 37

Second Embodiment

[0048] Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be
described with reference to the drawing. FIG. 11 is a view showing outer
blades of an electric shaver according to the present embodiment.

[0049] An electric shaver 1A according to the present embodiment is mainly
composed of the shaver main body 3, the blade unit 4 provided on the top
of the shaver main body 3, and a driving unit (not shown in the figures)
to drive the blade unit 4, as in the case of the first embodiment.

[0050] The main difference between the present embodiment and the first
embodiment is that outer blades 11A of the blade unit 4 are composed of
the first net blade 17 and the second net blade 19.

[0051] In particular, the first and second net blades 17 and 19 are
arranged parallel to each other in the short-side direction 25 that is
the traveling direction (the shaving direction) of the electric shaver
1A. The first net blade 17 is provided on one side in the short-side
direction 25, and the second net blade 19 is provided on the other side.

[0052] In addition, the hair lifting frames 33 to sufficiently lift the
body hair at a small hair rising angle are provided in the range X
between the top Y of the first net blade 17 and the top Y of the second
net blade 19.

[0053] Therefore, in the present embodiment, the hair lifting frames 33
are provided in at least one of an R portion 17b of the first net blade
17 on the inner side in the short-side direction and an R portion 19b of
the second net blade 19 on the inner side in the short-side direction.

[0054] As in the case of the first embodiment, the electric shaver 1A
according to the present embodiment having the above-described
configuration can also achieve the effect that the hair lifting frames 33
can lift the body hair up efficiently, and at the same time, an influence
(damage) on the skin surface 37 can be prevented since the hair lifting
frames 33 are not provided in the R portions 17a and 19a in which
adhesion to the skin surface 37 is high.

[0055] Although the preferred embodiments have been described above, the
present invention is not limited to the foregoing embodiments, and
various modifications can be made. For example, although the hair lifting
frames 33 are provided only in the third net blade 21 in the first
embodiment, the hair lifting frames 33 may be further provided in the R
portion 17b of the first net blade 17 on the inner side in the short-side
direction and the R portion 19b of the second net blade 19 on the inner
side in the short-side direction.

[0056] Although the first to third net blades 17, 19 and 21 formed into an
inverted U-shape viewed from a lateral side are arranged parallel to each
other in the short-side direction 25 that is the traveling direction (the
shaving direction) of the electric shaver 1 in the first embodiment, the
present invention may be applied to the conventional electric shavers
(such as an electric shaver in which first to third net blades are
arranged in a triangle manner).